Read Online The Male Brain by Louann Brizendine - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Louann Brizendine
Tags: General, science, Medical, Psychology, Neuroendocrinology, Sex differences, Neuropsychology, Gender Psychology, Men, Brain, Neuroscience, Psychology Of Men, Physiology
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have personalities to match. But she triggered his brain's "must have" sequence, and without another thought, he was on his feet and moving toward her. He noticed that her friend was attractive too, but it was Nicole who took his breath away.
With long blond hair, a petite hourglass figure, and a face that could easily belong to a model, Nicole was well aware of the power of her sexual attractiveness. She was now twenty-six, and she'd been my patient since her rocky teenage years. Men had been drooling over her ever since she turned fifteen, grew breasts, and had her braces removed.
As Ryan watched Nicole, he was practically oblivious to everyone but her. His brain's sexual-pursuit area, in his hypothalamus, lit up like a slot machine . Suddenly, all he could think about was how to get her attention. Without being consciously aware of it, Ryan was following the commands of his ancient mating brain .
The men alive today have been biologically selected over millions of years to focus on fertile females. What they don't know is that they've evolved to zoom in on certain features that indicate reproductive health. Researchers have found that the attraction to an hourglass figure--large breasts, small waist, flat stomach, and full hips--is ingrained in men across all cultures . This shape tells his brain that she's young, healthy, and probably not pregnant with another man's child. Like all men's, Ryan's number-one mate-detection circuit was visual . A male's visual cortex comes prewired to notice women who are shaped like Nicole. Men don't really have one-track minds, but when their brains enter "mate-pursuit mode," they can seem to.
FLIRTING IS A "CONTACT-READINESS" SPORT
When Nicole gave me a detailed recap of their first meeting, it was clear that somehow Ryan had charmed her. If we could have watched the play-by-play of Ryan's nonverbal body movements we would have seen him walk casually but deliberately toward Nicole, hoping she'd look up. Once she did, we'd see him tilt his chin and raise his eyebrows ever so slightly, smiling as he took a step closer. Next, Nicole tipped her head toward him, returned the smile, and leaned back just a little. Her body was saying, I'm interested, but cautious . Ryan's mating brain read Nicole right . While still smiling, he took a half-step back.
While Ryan didn't have that chiseled GQ look that Nicole found most attractive, he was cute and looked harmless enough . His smile and the twinkle in his hazel eyes disarmed her, and she could feel her own smile widening as she looked down to coyly break eye contact.
In scientific lingo, these nonverbal flirting signals that Ryan and Nicole were displaying are called contact-readiness cues. Without saying a word, they were signaling interest to the other's brain. I still smile at the memory of my scientist husband trying to flirt with me and hanging on my every word at the business lunch where we first met. Flirting is a contact-readiness sport, and men who do it best score the most.
As this scene with Ryan and Nicole played out, it might have looked as though their movements and facial expressions had been carefully rehearsed to suit Western culture. But these nonverbal microflirtations appear to come preprogrammed deep in the human brain. Researchers have filmed first encounters between men and women in a variety of cultures and have found that people around the world give the same flirtatious cues as Ryan and Nicole .
While Ryan continued in pursuit mode, he took a deep breath as he quickly screwed up the courage to make his next move, desperately hoping this gorgeous woman was not out of his league . Trying to sound as confident and laid-back as possible, he addressed both Nicole and Maggie: "You two look thirsty. Can I get you some drinks?"
Before Nicole could say no, Maggie accepted the offer. "Thanks! I'd like a glass of Chardonnay. I'm Maggie, by the way, and this is Nicole."
Ryan nodded as he said, "I'm Ryan." Then he turned to
With long blond hair, a petite hourglass figure, and a face that could easily belong to a model, Nicole was well aware of the power of her sexual attractiveness. She was now twenty-six, and she'd been my patient since her rocky teenage years. Men had been drooling over her ever since she turned fifteen, grew breasts, and had her braces removed.
As Ryan watched Nicole, he was practically oblivious to everyone but her. His brain's sexual-pursuit area, in his hypothalamus, lit up like a slot machine . Suddenly, all he could think about was how to get her attention. Without being consciously aware of it, Ryan was following the commands of his ancient mating brain .
The men alive today have been biologically selected over millions of years to focus on fertile females. What they don't know is that they've evolved to zoom in on certain features that indicate reproductive health. Researchers have found that the attraction to an hourglass figure--large breasts, small waist, flat stomach, and full hips--is ingrained in men across all cultures . This shape tells his brain that she's young, healthy, and probably not pregnant with another man's child. Like all men's, Ryan's number-one mate-detection circuit was visual . A male's visual cortex comes prewired to notice women who are shaped like Nicole. Men don't really have one-track minds, but when their brains enter "mate-pursuit mode," they can seem to.
FLIRTING IS A "CONTACT-READINESS" SPORT
When Nicole gave me a detailed recap of their first meeting, it was clear that somehow Ryan had charmed her. If we could have watched the play-by-play of Ryan's nonverbal body movements we would have seen him walk casually but deliberately toward Nicole, hoping she'd look up. Once she did, we'd see him tilt his chin and raise his eyebrows ever so slightly, smiling as he took a step closer. Next, Nicole tipped her head toward him, returned the smile, and leaned back just a little. Her body was saying, I'm interested, but cautious . Ryan's mating brain read Nicole right . While still smiling, he took a half-step back.
While Ryan didn't have that chiseled GQ look that Nicole found most attractive, he was cute and looked harmless enough . His smile and the twinkle in his hazel eyes disarmed her, and she could feel her own smile widening as she looked down to coyly break eye contact.
In scientific lingo, these nonverbal flirting signals that Ryan and Nicole were displaying are called contact-readiness cues. Without saying a word, they were signaling interest to the other's brain. I still smile at the memory of my scientist husband trying to flirt with me and hanging on my every word at the business lunch where we first met. Flirting is a contact-readiness sport, and men who do it best score the most.
As this scene with Ryan and Nicole played out, it might have looked as though their movements and facial expressions had been carefully rehearsed to suit Western culture. But these nonverbal microflirtations appear to come preprogrammed deep in the human brain. Researchers have filmed first encounters between men and women in a variety of cultures and have found that people around the world give the same flirtatious cues as Ryan and Nicole .
While Ryan continued in pursuit mode, he took a deep breath as he quickly screwed up the courage to make his next move, desperately hoping this gorgeous woman was not out of his league . Trying to sound as confident and laid-back as possible, he addressed both Nicole and Maggie: "You two look thirsty. Can I get you some drinks?"
Before Nicole could say no, Maggie accepted the offer. "Thanks! I'd like a glass of Chardonnay. I'm Maggie, by the way, and this is Nicole."
Ryan nodded as he said, "I'm Ryan." Then he turned to
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